Family Command Center Using an Old Door

Hi All!!! Finally I have get to share our Family Command Center that we made from an old door. I say Finally because this project was one of those if something could go wrong it went terribly wrong. And I say we because it was because of my husband's help that our Command Center is now complete, thanks babe!!!

Remember when I made the Photo Door? After we finished the project my carpenter husband was hired to remove and install a new door for a client. He purchased the old door from the homeowners and brought it home and it has been sitting in the garage until now. I couldn't decide exactly what to do with it, there are tons of ideas out there for repurposing old doors.
We are the least organized people I know and that really bothers me. So, in an effort to help organize this family I decided we needed a family command center and the door would be perfect for that.
Again if you follow on Instagram you saw a pic a long time ago of me scraping or sanding this door, actually I think I posted a few different times. I had high hopes of having this door done before the Dino Party and then when that didn't happen I tried to make it happen before Sadie's 1st birthday which was a crazy idea because in that 2 weeks we tore apart our kitchen for phase 1 of our kitchen update. Whew!
So here she is before

Did I mention all the scraping and sanding I did? Just for the sake of "keepin it real" here- I spent countless hours scraping and sanding this side you see up there but knew if I painted over it the whole thing would look like crap. And I hate harsh chemicals so the idea of using some sort of stripper was out. So I dared to peek at the other side and it wasn't too bad so I scraped and sanded that side for the finished project. I'm talking lots of hours wasted on the first/wrong side. That's only the beginning of the difficulties I made for myself on this project.

 

After I was happy with the scraping and sanding I moved the door outside, and cleaned up the glass the best I could to paint the window panes with chalkboard paint. After several coats of that I took the door inside and waited a day before removing the painter's tape. Then I taped off the black chalkboard areas to paint the door white. After the door was painted I removed the tape and here is where things went wrong again. The white paint I used for the door seeped under the tape and the tape peeled off some of the chalkboard paint. So the door had to be taped off again and the panes sprayed again with chalkboard paint. GRRR!!! I thought it would be best to do the darker color 1st but it ended up not being the right way to do it.

Even minor little hiccups seemed to make this project take way longer than it should have. After the door and the panes were painted I cleaned the door handle and plate in vinegar to make them shine. Then added wire baskets I had purchased from Pick Your Plum, printed simple labels for the baskets and it was done.

 

One basket is for mail and the other is for all the schedules that we have going, so they are close at hand to keep the top of the door up to date with all of the goings on here. 

I may add some knobs or hooks to the sides around the panes for keys or a leash (sob, sob). School starts next week so this was perfect timing to test it out.

 

Thanks for stopping by At Home with Sweet T!!!

-Tracy

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Bread Tin

Hi all!!! I'm back again with another Blue Ocean Breeze project from the kitchen.  This color is really working with the kitchen and I'm loving it. Hopefully I'll still love it when Summer is over. This project is doing what I love best, upcycling/repurposing!!!
I took this popcorn tin (after we devored the yummy flavored popcorn of course)

 

And as you probably guessed already gave it a light sanding and then spray painted it my new favorite color.

 

 

Then with my trusty Cricut, cut vinyl letter's to spell "Bread" with the Plantin Schoolbook cartridge.

Ta da! Easy! It adds color and helps keep my counter tops from being so cluttered. And now it's obvious where the bread goes should anyone help put groceries away or clean up the kitchen. 

Do you have a bread box? a bread drawer? Where do you store your bread?

 

Thanks for stopping by At Home with Sweet T!

-Tracy







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My Repurposed Life

 

Turn a metal planter into a kitchen caddy

Hey all! I have a little project to share today that brought some color to our kitchen and is functional.

I had been looking for something for awhile to help keep the area around the kitchen sink a bit tidier.  I considered baskets or bowls then came across this metal planter that was the perfect size.

I found it at Goodwill for $2. We actually used it just as I bought it for few months. After phase 1 of our kitchen update was done I decided it was time to pick some accent colors to use. I can't decide what to call this color but Krylon calls it Blue Ocean Breeze and I love it!!!

Our cabinets are now white and the floor is gray. Phase 2 should be new counter tops, backsplash and sink. We are leaning towards black countertops. I think this Blue Ocean Breeze will pop even more after that step.

So what's in my kitchen caddy? Dish soap, drain stoppers, Magic Eraser, scrubber, a Pampered Chef scraper, and dish towel. I found the dish towel at the Dollar Tree!!! The caddy has also been the home of hand soap too. Before I had a caddy for all of this, these items were tossed in the cabinet below the sink or behind the faucet. Now its all nice and tidy.

Blue Ocean Breeze found it's way onto the lid for a pickle jar that is the new home of our dishwasher tabs. Now that I have decided on some colors I am finding lots of things to add to our kitchen.
Thanks for stopping by At Home with Sweet T!
-Tracy

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Lace earring organizer

Happy New Year friends!!! Are you just going nuts trying to get your home cleaned and organized? I am!!! All of January's post I will be sharing how I am getting our house in shape for 2014!

Do you remember my Knobby Jewelry Organizer? Today I'm sharing how I store my earrings. 

I found this frame on a garage sale page for a whopping $3!!! Score! It is just hard plastic but I loved the shape and the little roses on it seemed perfectly romantic.

 

The picture just isn't my style so it's bu-bye in the trash. I saved the glass though, who knows when I'll think of something to do with it. 

Supplies:

Frame

Spray paint

Rub 'n buff

Lace

Hot glue

I wiped down the frame to have a clean surface to spray. I spray painted it with Krylon Island Splash. I thought it looked similar in color to the knobby jewelry organizer.

 

Then to highlight the roses I used some Silver leaf Rub 'n Buff.

To add the lace I just applied a small line of hot glue then using the eraser end of a pencil tapped the lace into the glue. The pencil really will save you from having burnt fingers-trust me (Youch!!) 

Then add your beautiful earrings and hang on your wall. 

Voila!!!

I love it!!!

 

Thanks for stopping by At Home with Sweet T!

-Tracy
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